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Watering at the Farm with Gilmour

This week has been quite warm, humid and dry here in the northeast - and there is only a small chance of rain expected over the next few days.

Because of this typical August weather, the sprinklers at the farm have been very busy. To keep the many trees, shrubs and plants well irrigated until the next soaking rainfall, we use many hoses, nozzles and sprinklers from Gilmour, a Madison, Wisconsin-based company that’s been manufacturing watering equipment and solutions for more than 65-years. I use several products at Bedford, at Lily Pond in East Hampton, and at Skylands, my home in Maine.

We recently received a new batch of supplies - just in time for all the warm weather watering. Here are some photos.

During the driest, warmest days of summer, we have to do lots of watering around the farm. Fortunately, I have two deep wells – all of the hoses and bibs are connected to an elaborate underground irrigation system. And thankfully, we aren’t under any water use restrictions.

Gilmour has a very durable collection of gardening supplies – these are always put to great use in the gardens and wherever thorough watering is needed. http://gilmour.com/where-to-buy

Their supplies include a variety of sprinklers, nozzles, timers, etc.

The Gilmour 100-foot Flexogen hose is a heavy-duty eight-ply garden hose with a polished surface that resists abrasions, stains, and mildew. I have these hoses all over the farm.

Here is one located just to the side of my long carport. This rack is from one of my old retail collections – so decorative and so durable. They last many years.

And here is one on the back side of my carport underneath a row of bird feeders and next to my dwarf apple espalier.

Here is a hose across from the carport, not far from the basement door to my Winter House.

And here is another located off a terrace at my Winter House. During this time of year, I keep the sprinklers near the hoses, so they’re always readily available.

This Gilmour hose is located near the new pool. And notice the color. I like that the hoses are gray – they coordinate well with the color on all the buildings and outdoor furniture at Bedford, a color I designed called Bedford Gray.

Gilmour also makes oscillating sprinklers that are easy to control in a variety of areas – they provide thousands of square feet in water coverage.

I use several around the farm for gently watering ground covering plants and lawns. Mornings are the best times to water – when water pressure is high, evaporation is low, and the soil can absorb the water before the sun heats up the ground.

Here is another Gilmour oscillating sprinkler outside my main greenhouse near my front gate. Once the watering in one area is done, it’s important to turn off the water at the source. Just turning off at the sprinkler puts a lot of pressure on the hoses and pipes.

I love these tripod sprinklers – the height, distance and spray patterns can be adjusted to suit so many garden needs. They’re also very, very sturdy, and because they’re all-metal, they can stand-up to frequent use around the property.

This tripod sprinkler is used for the thousands of tree seedlings that are being maintained and nurtured outside the greenhouse. The adjustable tripod can reach a height of 58-inches and has spiked feet to keep it stable on gravel, grass or soil.

The collar of these tripod sprinklers can be adjusted for partial to full circle coverage, and the pin diffuser allows for a customized spray from powerful jet to gentle mist. The round dial on top makes it easy to set the direction and length of spray.

In the late afternoons, we also do a lot of watering. This sprinkler is located in an area I call my Stewartia garden – it is still under development, so there are new, young plantings here that need to be well-watered.

In my flower cutting garden, the tripod is angled to spray just above the tallest plantings. For flowers, one to two watering sessions per week are usually sufficient.

Look how far the sprinkler can reach – and the spray is very consistent.

This sprinkler is set lower, with a shorter, weaker reach. Never direct hard spraying sprinklers at trees – this may mar the bark. Use harder sprays for open spaces and wide lawn areas.

This large coverage pattern master sprinkler covers more than 100-feet in diameter. This sprinkler is great to use on lawns. It can easily be adjusted to fit many space configurations.

The Gilmour timer on the left is also very handy. It has dual outlets to run two watering tools simultaneously, and programmable start time, frequency and duration features. If hooked up to a sprinkler, it can be programmed to water any length of time from one minute to 360-minutes.

Gilmour carries an assortment of hose nozzles for both gardening and cleaning. Many nozzles have a variety of spray settings, and come in several ergonomic designs. http://www.gilmour.com/watering-products/spray-nozzles/

These include all-in-one thumb control features for easy use.

Here is Carlos washing the vegetable greenhouse windows with a Gilmour nozzle and hose – he says both are very light and manageable.

Some of the hoses are already connected to nozzles, but sprinklers are always nearby this time of ear.

Well-established trees with strong, deep root systems will be more drought tolerant. Most of my trees, such as these in the American beech grove are very hardy and can wait for the next soaking rain.

During the summer, a good watering is done to a depth of about six to eight inches. An even, intermittent sprinkling is best for thorough, deep watering. Hopefully, all your gardens are getting the water they need.